Secrets
by Pataki-Shortman
Summary: Thirty three year old Helga is shocked when she learns former classmate, Lila, has been murdered. The shock continues when it's revealed that Lila's soon to be ex-husband is the prime suspect. Arnold. It's been 15 years, but she knows he didn't do it. And she was going to prove it. Along the way she starts exposing secrets Lila held, spilling a few of her own in the process.
1. Alone

**Secrets**

Thirty three year old Helga Pataki is shocked when she learns her former classmate, Lila, has been murdered. The shock continues when it's revealed that Lila's soon to be ex-husband is the prime suspect. Arnold. It's been 15 years, but she knows he didn't do it. And she was going to prove it. Along the way she starts exposing secrets Lila held in life, spilling a few of her own in the process.

For now this is a hard T, ratings may change to M.

 **Secrets Part One**

Thirty three year old Helga Pataki let out a sigh of relief as the elevator doors closed shut, causing the view to her office disappear before her eyes. She glanced down at her watch, too lazy to fish her phone out of her purse, and checked the time. _8:30_. She put in fourteen another hour day; just like she had for the past three weeks. _God_ , she was exhausted. She was beyond relieved that the trial was starting in just two days. They were well prepared; if all went according to plan and there were no big surprises the trial should be over in a matter of just a couple of weeks. The settlement was going to be huge if, _no not if_ , _when_ they won this case. All these extra hours she was putting in would be well worth it in the end.

As the elevator descended to the first floor Helga shifted her feet uncomfortably. Her feet were aching. She needed out of the three inch high heels she was wearing. As a teenager she never wore the things. She usually stuck with chunky heeled boots, sneakers, flats, or sandals. It wasn't until she hit her twenties that she started wearing high heels and discovered that she kind of loved the way they made her feel. Without heels she was 5'7, with heels she was six feet or taller. It made her feel powerful. It made her feel intimidating. As a lawyer who otherwise did not look very intimidating in the court room it was an extra boost she needed, despite the achy feet.

She straightened her posture as the elevator doors opened and power waked to the front doors, exiting the building. She took quick steps forward, flagging down a taxi. She gave the driver her address as she slipped into the taxi, placing her briefcase to her next to her as she dug into her purse to find her phone. She had a text message from her ex-husband, asking her how all the pre-trail stuff was going. She quickly typed out a message telling him it was going great, but was looking forward to it all being over. She was going to need a vacation after all this. Mike texted back moments later, offering her use of the cabin they once shared a couple hours away.

Helga met Mike Wallis while in law school. She was three years younger than him, but just as driven. He had told her once that's what originally attracted him to her. They were married the summer after she turned twenty five. She was just finishing up law school and he was already making a name for himself at the law firm he was working at. They had been a good match. On paper they were practically perfect for each other. They had been happy for the first five years, but they had slowly drifted apart. By the end of their marriage they felt more like roommate than a married couple. They simply fell out of love with each other and decided to divorce while they were still friends.

The divorce had been finalized eight months earlier and they were both much happier than they had been while they were together. Mike was now seeing a lovely woman, Hannah, and Helga honestly wished him the best. He deserved to be happy. She knew he felt the same for her. In the divorce Helga kept their penthouse and Mike got their cabin on the lake, though he still let her use it from time to time since his permeant residence was in the city.

She typed out another text thanking him and telling him that she might have to take him up on that. Shoving her phone back into her purse she rested her head back onto the seat and shut her eyes. She was relieved that her cab driver wasn't talkative. He probably could see that she was about to fall asleep in the back of his cab. She was pretty damn close to falling asleep when she felt the cab pull over into a stop. "Mam?" The drive asked, almost gently, like he was afraid he'd startle her. "We're here."

Helga's eyes snapped open before she grabbed her wallet, pulling out a ten and five. "Thanks. Keep the change."

"Thank you. Hope you have a good night."

"Thanks. You too." Helga waved as she exited the cab, her purse and briefcase in hand. She stifled a yawn as she approached her building. Her penthouse had its very own private elevator and Helga was rather thankful for that. She hated small talk with neighbors she didn't really care about. It was bad enough running into them in the building's gym, they always seemed to have a need to ask for a mundane legal advice. Law was her career, but she absolutely hated the fact that there was so many people who thought they should sue over the stupidest little thing. It was kind of ridiculous.

The elevator doors opened and Helga stepped into a small sitting area, where there was another locked door to enter the penthouse. She unlocked the door and kicked off her heels the second she walked in. She set her purse and briefcase down at the small table next to the front door before slipping her phone into her pocket. It was 21% and needed to be charged when she went to bed. Slipping off her coat she draped it over her briefcase rather than putting it away in the coat closet.

For a moment she thought about going straight to bed, but on her way to a bedroom her stomach growled loudly. It was then Helga realized she never ate supper. She quickly changed into an oversized T-shirt, one that she was pretty sure was Mike's at one point, and a pair of sweatpants. She made her way to the kitchen, raiding the refrigerator for something to eat. She frowned slightly when she saw the box of Chinese takeout. When was the last time she got Chinese? She pulled the takeout carton from the refrigerator and threw it away, without opening the container. She didn't need to small that. She returned to her search for something to eat and settled on leftover pizza from two days earlier. She plopped the plate into microwave and leaned against the counter for a moment as it cooked.

She sighed, sick of the silence she turned on the television that was in the kitchen and quickly flipped the station to HGTV, which had most of her favorite shows. Property Brothers was on. Jonathon was currently showing a couple what he could do with a rundown home to make it their own. The microwave beeped, singling that the pizza was done cooking. She grabbed the hot plate and sat at the counter watching her show as she ate. Drew pointed out the home's beautiful views and Helga glanced out of the floor to ceiling windows that were in the kitchen/dining/living room area. It was view that attracted Helga and Mike the penthouse in the first place. The view overlooked Elliot Bay and it was especially gorgeous in the morning and early evening hours. She loved sitting out on the balcony that was off the master bedroom drinking coffee in the morning or a glass of wine at night. The sunsets were phenomenal. She missed being able to see them.

She nibbled on a piece of pizza and sighed again, she was so lonely. She missed being in a relationship. She missed the companionship that Mike gave her. She knew the divorce was for the best. If they hadn't divorced when they did they probably wouldn't be friends today. By the time they started talking about separating they had started fighting more, but at least when he was still around she had someone to talk to after these late nights. She was too exhausted to go out.

She missed sex. She _really_ missed sex. Self-love just wasn't the same for her. She needed to get back out there, Helga decided. The divorce had been final for eight months and Mike had a girlfriend. It was her turn to find someone else.

She just needed to find the time first.

* * *

"Damnit, Lila." Thirty four Arnold Shortman cursed his soon to be ex-wife's voicemail. "You need to start returning either my calls or better yet have your lawyer call mine. Please." He stressed the word please, "I just want to get this all over with." He ended the call, tossing his cellphone to the side before his hand roughly rubbed his face. He filed for divorce almost a year earlier and nothing was getting done. Things were only getting uglier. Lila was making the whole process as difficult as she could. Even though _she_ was the one who cheated.

The day Arnold brought up the fact he was filing for divorce Lila didn't argue. She didn't beg him to reconsider. No. She simply shrugged and told him she wasn't leaving the house. If he wanted a divorce he'd have to be the one move. So he did. He left their spacious two bedroom home for a cramped one bedroom crappy apartment. What hurt the worst was the fact she refused to give him his grandmother's wedding ring back. It was the one thing he asked for during their divorce proceedings. She wouldn't even entertain the idea. The fact that she spent the past five years bitching that she wanted a bigger ring pissed him off even more. She didn't even like the ring. She just wanted to hurt him.

Arnold honestly didn't know why he ever married her in the first place. He wasted too many years on that woman. He pulled himself off the couch so he could grab a beer from the refrigerator. Taking a swig he sat back down, and turned on the television. He probably shouldn't be drinking. He taught fifth grade and it was a school night, but one beer wouldn't hurt. Two or three probably wouldn't hurt either.

He released an angry sigh. Arnold wished he would have waited to call Lila. Now he was just annoyed with his estranged wife. He was annoyed himself. He should have broken up with her in high school the _first_ time she cheated on him. But when he found out and confronted her she cried and swore it was a mistake and she promised she'd never do it again. _Bullshit_. When they got married and he'd get mad at her for overspending or picking fights with him he always ended up folding and apologizing to _her_. Lila was extremely manipulative, especially when it came to him. He just wish he realized it sooner; it probably would have saved him years of heartache.

After finishing his beer Arnold through the bottle in the recycling and made his way to his tiny bathroom and brushed his teeth to get ready for bed.

* * *

"Where the hell are you?" Lila Sawyer hissed into her phone, "You were supposed to be here fifteen minutes ago." She rolled her eyes, "I don't care. I want my money." She laughed mockingly as the person on the other end of the phone call spoke, "You think I'm asking for too much? Think about how much you'll lose if I tell _anyone_ that dirty little secret of yours. I tell you this, you'll be losing a hell of a lot more than just your money." She paused as the person spoke and smiled despite the fact they couldn't see her. She ignored the beeping signaling she had another call, "Good. I'm glad you're seeing it my way. Be here in 30 minutes or else." She threatened, "Yes, the same place as last time. See you then."

After ending the call, on habit, Lila deleted the number she had just called. She rolled her eyes once she noticed Arnold called her. She held the phone to ear, listening to his voicemail. That earned yet another eye roll. Lila honestly wasn't sure if it was funny, pathetic, or just cute when Arnold was trying to be demanding. It was pretty laughable. Lila was positive that if she went to his shitty little apartment right now in fake tears and false apologies he would take her back. In fact she was so sure, she'd put money on it. She had him wrapped around her little finger since day one. That wasn't ever going to change.

She would stop dangling Arnold soon. Sooner or later he'd give her anything she wanted in the divorce just too finally end it. Including that pathetic little ring that he had been crying about. Smoothing out her fiery red hair, she shoved her phone into her coat pocket and made her way to the meeting spot. She couldn't wait to get her hands on this money.

Little did Lila know, she wouldn't be leaving the meeting spot with her life, let alone the money.

* * *

So I hope you guys liked this first chapter. I know it was probably a little boring, but I wanted to take some time to introduce Helga and Arnold and show where they are in their lives at the moment. I know it may be a little overdone that Lila is bad, but I think (I really, really hope) that story has a different (and natural) take.


	2. Shock

I'd like to thank everyone who took the time to review the first chapter! I was blown away by the response. To the guest reviewer who called Arnold a wuss and asked why who would marry someone who cheated on them…A lot of people actually. Their reasons vary. Sometimes the cheater is truly sorry and they are forgiven. Other times it could have to do with a low self-esteem or just wanting to be loved.

Anyway, I hope all my readers enjoy part two.

* * *

 **Secrets Part Two**

"Shit." Helga cursed as her alarm blared harshly tearing her cruelly from her deep sleep. It felt like she just shut her eyes. How could it possibly be 5:30 already? She grabbed her phone off its dock and switched off the alarm. Groaning, she cocooned herself further into her blankets. Five more minutes wouldn't hurt, would it? Maybe another thirty if she skipped her shower. She could practically hear Mike's annoyed sigh, telling her he didn't know why she bothered even setting an alarm if she wasn't going to get up when it went off. When they first started having 'sleep overs' she annoyed him by setting five different alarms that were spaced 20, 15, 10, and 5 minutes apart. Just when Mike was about to fall back to sleep the next one went off. The alarm thing was actually what caused their first fight. She sighed, slightly annoyed that even though they were no longer together she couldn't help but admit Mike was right. She needed to get up.

Throwing the covers off her body she forced herself get out of bed. She marched directly towards the shower before she had the chance change her mind. Maybe the shower massager would wake her up.

After her shower Helga, with a towel wrapped around her hair, made her way to the kitchen and dug through her Keurig pods and settled on Pumpkin Spice, it was the first week of November after all. It was pumpkin season. She shoved her favorite mug, one with owls printed on it, under the Keurig's spout and loaded the pod and water into the machine. As her coffee was brewing she put two pieces of white bread into the toaster. It was a simple breakfast, coffee and toast with cinnamon butter lathered on the top, but it would get her through until lunch. With the case she had been working on she had been having later lunches than normal. She kept a stash of peanut butter granola bars in her desk for her to munch on if she got hungry before she got a chance to actually go to lunch.

She flipped on the television, watching the morning news as she nibbled on her toast and drank her coffee. As she started her last half piece of toast Helga scrolled through her phone, double checking what time her meetings that day were. She had one at 8:00, one at 11:00, and then another at 2:00. Then, finally she had one final meeting with her client before their trial started the day after tomorrow. With all the preparation she had been painstakingly working on tomorrow, the day before trial, should actually be fairly easy.

Friday would be the first day of the trial and keeping up with tradition, Helga would be meeting Mike (now along with Hannah) at The Bar (which was owned by two former lawyers) for 'good luck' drinks to kick off the start of an important trial. It was something the former couple started while they were still married and had mutually decided to continue after their divorce. Luckily, even now that Mike was seeing someone, the tradition continued.

Checking the time, 6:20, Helga quickly finished off her cinnamon butter toast and gulped down the last of her coffee. She needed to get moving or else she was going to be late.

* * *

By the time Friday rolled around Arnold had become increasingly more annoyed that Lila had not returned his phone call. She hadn't even bothered calling her lawyer. He was staying late after school, wanting to finish grading the math and geography tests that the kids took that morning before he started his weekend. Not that he had any plans. Gerald, who was still his best friend after all these years even after he moved to LA, had been encouraging him to get back out in the dating world.

Arnold had been thinking about it more lately. Dating. Originally he had wanted to wait until after his ugly divorce way final to avoid anything that women could view as baggage, but since Lila was pretty much doing everything in her power to postpone things he debated if he should just give it a try. Hell, if Lila could screw other people while they were still married why shouldn't he? At least _he_ had the decency to file for divorce first. At least _she_ wouldn't have to get a STD test because he wasn't still sleeping with her.

He set his pen down, taking a moment to take several deep breaths, struggling to calm down. Up until recently Arnold had never been an angry person. Growing up he was Mister Optimistic, always looking on the Brightside of things. Sure, he had his limits, but it usually took quite a bit to push him over the edge. Now, on the other hand, even thinking about Lila and what she put him through, what she was still putting him through made his blood boil.

For a moment he thought about stopping by the house after he finished grading tests and giving his should be ex-wife a piece of his mind. That moment was short lived. Arnold knew it wouldn't help any, it would only make things worse. She'd probably make a big production about the whole thing and press charges for verbal assault or something.

Grading the last few tests Arnold locked up his classroom, deciding to call in for pizza that night when he got back to his shithole apartment. He thought that maybe Saturday night he would go to a bar or something and try to meet someone new. Though, he wasn't sure what woman in her right mind would want him right now. He was kind of a mess.

As Arnold pulled into his parking spot near the front door to his apartment he noticed two police officers attempting to get buzzed into the building. Stuffing his phone into his pants pocket he jogged up to the officers, "Do you need to get into the building officers?" He asked, pulling out his keys.

"Yeah. We're looking for one the tenants." The older officer stepped aside so Arnold could open the door.

He lived in a small complex. There were only about 15 apartments besides his. "Can I ask who you're looking for? I know most of the people that live here. I could probably help track whoever you're looking for down for you."

"It's a rather sensitive matter." The younger officer told him. "But we're looking for Arnold Shortman."

Arnold froze as he was just about to insert his key into the keyhole. He frowned. "I'm Arnold Shortman. What's going on?"

The police officers exchanged looks before the older one spoke up. "A jogger discovered a body this morning. We believe it's your wife, Lila Sawyer. We need to ID the body."

He didn't correct the officer; that she would be his ex-wife soon like had been getting used to doing. "Body…You need me to identify the body…As in dead?" Arnold stuttered out. He felt like he was going to pass out. "Lila's dead?" He swallowed the lump in his throat. "How?" He wanted their marriage to end, but not like this.

The older officer gave Arnold a slight pat on the back, "How about you identify your wife's body first, then we'll talk more about what happened." Arnold only nodded as he followed the two police officers back to their squad car.

* * *

Helga arrived at _The Bar_ shortly after six. Mike and Hannah were already there, they were seated on the same side of the booth waving her down as she arrived. "Hey." She greeted with a smile. Court had gotten out around four so she changed out of her pants and into a pair a dark washed jeans and navy blue top. She wore flats instead of heels, it felt nice to be casual. She took a seat across from the new couple, a pitcher of Helga's favorite beer and three glasses between them. "How was your week?" She asked before she took a sip of her beer, savoring the taste.

Mike shrugged, "That client I was telling you about ended up settling, so things are quiet at work right now." Mike Wallis had dark brown hair that began greying a couple of years earlier, when he was 34. He hated it so much that he thought about dying it. Helga, on the other hand, thought it was sexy. She convinced him to keep the grey, at least for a while. The look must have grown on him because he hadn't dyed it yet, even after the separation.

Hannah Tanner was pretty much Helga's total opposite when it came to looks. While Helga was blonde with blue eyes Hannah had brown eyes and was a brunette. Hannah was a nurse, who met Mike when he was at the doctors' office for a check-up after he was in a minor fender bender a few months back. Helga was thankful that she understood her and Mike's friendship. She knew that there was plenty of women out there who would not support the two ex's remaining good friends. "The office closed at noon today so I took Homer for a walk and then took like a two hour nap. It was fantastic." Homer was Mike's mutt that he adopted from a local animal shelter. No one was sure exactly what breeds he was, but Hannah guess there was pit bull in the mix because of his ears and nose. Despite the bad reputation pit bulls had, Homer was one the sweetest dogs Helga had ever seen.

"Ugh, lucky. I can't remember the last time I got to take a nap on weekday." Helga slightly wined as she flipped through the menu, "You guys are getting food, right? I'm starving."

"We are." Mike told her, "How'd the first couple days of your trial go?"

"So far so good. I can't really talk about it though. Not until it's over anyway." Helga was representing Sarah Summers, a woman who was suing her former employers for sexual harassment. HR ignored her complaints and when Helga did some further digging she found out the same thing happened to four other women, all involving the same man. Sarah was just the first to finally press charges. The company in question is a multibillion dollar company, so the payoff was going to be huge. "Do you guys have big plans for the weekend?"

"We're leaving tomorrow to visit my parents. They live out on a farm about two hours from here, so Homer will get to run around." Hannah answered before pouring herself another beer. "Anyway else need a refill?" She didn't wait for an answer, instead she filled Helga's half empty glass back up full. "How about you Helga? What are your plans?"

"Nothing really, probably catch up on some sleep and do some cleaning. I'm a little behind on laundry. And I need to go grocery shopping." She laughed, "So, it's going to be a fun filled weekend for me." She joked.

A moment later a waitress stopped at their table to take their orders.

* * *

He was in shock, Arnold decided. It was just past nine. He got home only five minutes earlier. Now he was laying in his bed in total darkness. The officers that picked him up didn't even bother to warn him when they showed him Lila's body. It was so pale. Paler than it ever had been, which made the bruises around her neck that much more startling.

Lila was murdered.

As of now the coroner believed that she was hit on the back of the head, then when that didn't kill her, the monster strangled her. With his bare hands. Arnold felt sick. He couldn't imagine the fear she felt those last moments of life. There were so many moments in the past year that Arnold absolutely hated Lila after everything she put him through, but she hadn't deserved this! On the way to the coroner's office Arnold had been convinced that they were wrong, that they made a mistake. That Lila wasn't dead. Murder never crossed his mind.

Arnold released a shaky sigh before fishing out his phone from his pants pocket. He needed to call Gerald. He was sure Lila's murder would make the 10 o'clock news and he needed to the one to tell his best friend that he was a widower.

Gerald picked up the phone after the third ring _. "Hey man, I was just thinking about calling you. How's your night going?"_

"Gerald…" Arnold could hear his voice crack. He was on the verge of tears.

 _"Arnold?" Gerald immediately picked up the distress in his voice. "What's going on? Are you okay?"_

"Lila's dead." Arnold blurted out. "She was murdered Gerald." He was crying now. "Lila was murdered. I wanted it to end, I wanted to be out of this damn marriage….But not like this. Who would do something like this?"

 _On Gerald's end there was several long moments of stunned silence, "Arnold I have no idea what see. I'm sorry. Um…I'm booking the next flight to Hillwood okay? I'll be there as soon as I can."_

* * *

"Helga you have to tell me an embarrassing Mike story." Hannah practically begged after Mike got up to use the restroom. "I've told him so many of mine and the ass refuses to tell me any of his. It's getting extremely irritating. I know you don't to interfere in his relationship, but I promise you're not. I just want one story. Please." She drew out the word please into several extra syllables.

"Ugh, fine. I'll tell you one, but that's all you're going to get. When Mike and I first started dating we went this really nice Chinese restaurant. I can tell he's trying to impress me and honestly he was trying a bit too hard. Anyway, when we went order he asked Saskatchewan Chicken. So right away I start laughing, the waiter can barely contain himself, and Mike had no idea why. Apparently ever since he was young he thought schezwan was Saskatchewan. Why he thought a Chinese dish would have Canadian province name, I have no idea. I mean I know we all have our knowledge gaps, but damn."

The two women started laughing just as Mike got back to the table. "What's so funny?"

Hannah giggled, "Nothing. Just girl talk."

"I doubt that." Mike grumbled with an eye roll, "Helga what's so funny?"

But Helga wasn't laughing anymore. Her attention wasn't on Hannah or Mike, instead it was on the large flat screen television that was behind Mike and Hannah's heads. There was no sound, they were in a noisy bar after all. But she could see Lila's picture with the caption, _Hillwood Woman, Murdered_. "Oh my God…" Helga covered her mouth in shock.

"What's wrong?" Both Mike and Hannah frowned, turning their attention to the television, to see what Helga was looking at.

"That woman. I knew her." Helga finally spoke up. "We went to school together since like fourth grade. I can't believe she's dead…" She couldn't even wrap her head around the fact that she was murdered.

"Oh Helga…I'm so sorry." Hannah spoke up first. "Were you to friends?"

Helga would have laughed at the obscurity of the question if the news hadn't been reporting on Lila's murder. Helga had hated Lila throughout high school, yet somehow, Lila hated her even more. Finally, she tore her eyes off the television screen and answer Hannah's question with a simple, "No."

* * *

Next chapter Helga sees Arnold for the first time in 15 years, so please continue reading. Things are about to pick up.


	3. Accused

**Secrets Part Three**

Gerald made it to Hillwood a mere five hours later, leaving his wife Amy and two year old son Martin James (who they called MJ) behind at their place in LA. Gerald worked as a music producer and Amy was a nurse, but she was currently taking time off to stay home with MJ. After five hours Gerald was still in shock. Lila was dead. Murdered. Sure, he thought Lila was a pretty horrible person, but she didn't deserve to go out like that. No one deserved that.

He wasn't sure how Arnold was going to handle this. Honestly, Gerald was really worried that his best friend was headed for some kind of breakdown. Not that he could blame him. By the time Gerald arrived at Arnold's apartment it was well after one in the morning. After Arnold moved in he gave Gerald a copy of his key just in case he ever needed it, which Gerald thought was a little ridiculous, because he lived a couple states away, but Arnold had been proven right. Taking a deep breath, Gerald prepared himself before entering his best friend's apartment. He had no idea what to expect.

He found Arnold passed out on the couch. A glass of, Gerald sniffed the drink, something strong nearly empty on the coffee table. Arnold wasn't big on the hard liqueur. Normally he stuck with beer or wine. For a second Gerald debated on waking him up, but quickly decided against it. He needed some sleep. Instead he flipped off the lights and took the recliner, leaving Arnold asleep on the couch.

* * *

The next morning it was Saturday so Helga decided to take the day and relax. She had planned on sleeping in, but after learning about Lila's murder the previous night she didn't sleep much. After waking up she stayed in bed, her laptop resting on her lap as she Googled news stories covering Lila's murder. Apparently, her body was discovered by jogger early Friday morning in a wooded area of Tina Park. Given the state of the body she was dead at least twenty four hours prior to discovery. There were no suspects at this time. Witnesses were urged to come forward.

Helga had a turbulent relationship with Lila and that was putting it lightly. She had never been a fan of Lila; her sickeningly sweet disposition always came off as fake in Helga's opinion. In high school Helga could see right through Lila's eyelash flutters, her sweeter than honey voice, and ever so-s. Helga always had a feeling that there was something vindictive and just plain mean beneath Lila's surface. Helga was proven right their junior year of high school when Lila told everyone she saw Wolfgang and Helga having sex in the janitor's closet of all places. Of course Wolfgang, the jackass he was, went alone with it and 'confirmed' that he popped her cherry. All of which was completely untrue.

It had been a humiliating time for Helga. She had thick skin, she had to growing up, but having classmates call her a slut or inviting her into the janitor's closet nearly every day for months was not easy. She always thought it was bullshit that Wolfgang's reputation was boosted, and she was a slut. Double standards suck. What hurt the most was how Arnold blew her off; since they had become pretty good friends by then. Then to top it all off, he started dating Lila just weeks after the whole lie. Of course, he didn't know it was a lie, mainly because Arnold had refused to even attempt to listen to Helga defend herself. There was a lot of bad blood between Arnold and Wolfgang so when Arnold thought Helga slept with him it was pretty much unforgivable in his book. The two of them barely spoke since. They haven't talked at all since they graduated. Helga never bothered going to reunions and she always sent regrets for weddings. For her own wedding she had a very small wedding, close family and friends only. She never had a desire to return to Hillwood, despite being like forty five minute drive.

In fact, the only time Helga was ever in Hillwood to run into old classmates was at Brooke Lloyd's funeral two years ago. Helga and Rhonda had a weird friendship in high school. They never talked to each other at school, but would hang out after and on the weekends when either of them had nothing else to do. Shortly after Helga started working for her firm she ran into Buckley (who like to be called Buck) Lloyd. Apparently Buck used Helga's firm whenever there was a legal issue with his business. He was the one who helped Helga make a name for herself within her the law firm when he requested her to be on the team to represent him in court, wanting to help out his daughter's old friend. Helga had been extremely thankful for that.

Other than that the only time Helga went to Hillwood was to visit her parents, which wasn't often. Helga's thoughts were interrupted when her phone started to ring. "Hey Pheebs." She answered after checking who was calling. Helga wasn't above screening her phone calls.

 _"Ohayo Helga." Phoebe greeted in Japanese._ It was something she did since they were kids. There was a point in time where it annoyed Helga, but when Phoebe taught her enough Japanese that they could carry on a lengthy conversation she appreciated it so much more. It had been pretty upsetting when Phoebe moved to Tennessee the summer before high school started, but against all the odds they stayed in contact and remained best friends. They were each other's maid of honors. Phoebe got married only year ago, wanting to get done with her residency at the hospital before she tied the knot.

"Ohayo Phoebe." Helga smiled as she closed her laptop. "How was your week?"

 _"Oh, it was fine…" There was a long pause. "Have you heard about Lila?"_

"I saw it on the 10 o'clock news last night. Can you believe it? I think I'm still in shock."

 _"I saw it on Facebook this morning." Helga didn't have a Facebook. She talked to the people she wanted to. She didn't really care about the rest. "I wonder who would have done such a thing…" Phoebe sighed sadly, "Are you planning on attending her funeral?"_

Helga practically snorted. "No. Why would I? I haven't talked to the woman in fifteen years. Besides we hated each other, if I show up people would probably think I was just there to dance on her grave or something. I'm sorry she's gone. I would never wish death on anybody, especially in the way it happened, but I feel no obligation going to her funeral. Sorry if that makes me sound awful, it's just the way I feel." She started ramble, "Are you planning on going?"

 _"No. I've been swamped at the hospital. Besides, it's been nineteen years since I've seen her." Phoebe paused, "Anyway…How was your week?"_

"Meh. It was fine. I just worked a lot. That trial for that sexual harassment case I was telling you about started yesterday and it was good first day, so I'm happy about that. Hopefully the rest of the trial goes just as well."

The two friends continued to chat for another hour before Phoebe had to go. Since it was still early Helga decided to try to go back to sleep for a little while.

* * *

Arnold woke up to the smell of bacon. He groaned; his head was pounding. He was instantly regretting drinking the night before. Why did he even have scotch in his apartment in the first place? Groaning again, he sat up looking over his shoulder at Gerald, who was making breakfast. "When did you get here? I didn't even hear you come in." He grumbled as he unsteadily got to his feet.

"About two. You were already passed out. How are you feeling, man?" He wasn't referring to his friend's hangover.

"Not good." Gerald handed him a mug of coffee before he could ask if he made any. Gerald gestured towards one of the chairs at the kitchen table, so Arnold sat down burying his head in his hands. "I just can't believe she's dead. I can't get the image of her body out of my head. I've spent the last six months wishing my marriage would end. I wanted it do end so badly…But not like this. She was horrible to me, but she didn't deserve to die like that."

"I wish I knew what to say." Gerald told him honestly as he made up a plates for Arnold and himself. "Hopefully the cops find who did this soon…In the mean time I will do whatever you need me to do." He paused, "Did the police tell when Lila's body would be released? We need to start planning, you know, things." He set one of the plates of eggs, bacon, and toast in front of Arnold before setting his own plate down.

"They said about a week." Arnold mumbled. "They need to collect any evidence that might be on her body. Those things take some time. I'm supposed to go to the police station today and fill out a statement and answer some questions."

Gerald frowned, "What kind of questions?"

Arnold shrugged, "Not sure. Probably just the standards. I'm guessing they'll want to know why we were getting divorced."

"Do they think you did it?"

"Probably." Arnold laughed humorlessly, "Don't they always suspect the husband? Once they talk it to me it will be fine. I have nothing to hide."

* * *

 _Six Weeks Later…_

It was Friday morning and Helga had taken the day off. The trial was officially over and the payoff had been huge. 12.1 million dollars huge. The amount had particularly harsh because the man was a repeat offender. Since the trial ended three out of the four other women the scumbag harassed had approached Helga to represent them in their own lawsuits.

Helga decided to take Mike up on his offer and use the cabin for a mini vacation. The cabin was only an hour and half away, but it was just far enough to get away from the city and everyday life. There was no cable or WiFi there so Helga planned on reading and maybe even do some writing. It had been so long since she wrote. Her love for writing never dwindled, even after all these years. She still hoped she'd get published someday.

She set her duffle bag on the kitchen counter before she grabbed a Ziploc bag and stuffed it with several Keurig pods. She was completely fine without cable or WiFi for two days, coffee not so much. She needed her daily fix. She placed the bag of pods into her duffle bag and zipped the bag up.

Her phone dinged, signaling a text message. Swinging her duffle bag over her shoulder and grabbed her phone reading the message, which was from Phoebe, on the way out. She froze. Her duffle bag fell to the floor.

 _Arnold was arrested Wednesday for Lila's murder._

 _Holy_. _Shit_.

That's the last thing Helga was expecting to read. How could anyone think Arnold could murder someone? Were the people involved in this case high? Sure, it had been fifteen years since she seen or spoke to Arnold, but she _knew_ he didn't do it. It didn't matter how much time passed, Helga absolutely refused to believe Arnold could become a killer.

Taking a deep breath Helga made a decision. One that she hoped she wouldn't regret. She needed change, but first she had to make a phone call.

* * *

Never in a million years did Arnold think he'd be in jail, but here he was, sitting in a jail cell. Arnold always knew he'd be questioned about Lila's murder, but he never ever thought for even a second he'd actually be charged for it. He still didn't know how it happened.

"Shortman."

Arnold was torn from his thoughts when a guard called out to him. He stood, "Yes?"

"There's a lawyer here that wants to speak with you." There was a loud beep and Arnold cell door was opened. The guard cuffed his hands and shackled his ankles before leading him into a meeting room. Arnold was curious about what lawyer in their right mind wanted to talk to him. He'd seen the news and read the paper, at the moment he looked pretty damn guilty.

The blonde woman didn't look up from the file she was reading as Arnold was lead into the room and while he was cuffed to the table, opposite to the lawyer. "Miss Pataki, if you need anything I'll be right outside the door." The guard promised, glaring at Arnold before leaving the room.

Arnold's jaw dropped in surprise, "Helga?" Despite his current predicament he couldn't help but notice how good she looked. Her blonde hair cascaded in waves just past her shoulders. Her blue eyes were even more beautiful than he remembered.

"Arnold…It's been awhile." Helga smiled nervously. "How are you holding up?"

"Helga…I swear I _did not_ do this. I-I-I don't know this happened."

"I know." Helga spoke barely above a whisper. She cleared her throat to speak up, "I know you didn't do it. If you let me, I'll prove it to everyone else."

Arnold took a look at Helga's outfit. He didn't know much about fashion, but he knew her clothing was expensive. She wore a fancy looking ring on her right hand that Lila probably would have killed for is she were still alive. Lila loved expensive things. She was always resentful towards him because he couldn't afford many of the thing she wanted. "I appreciate the offer, but I doubt I could afford you…They told me they'd get me a court appointed attorney."

"Arnold, public defends are overworked and under paid. If you have the opportunity to use someone else in a murder trial, you need to take it. This is your life we're talking about. You could spend the rest of your life in jail or worse. You do realize that the death penalty is legal here, right? And don't worry about money, my firm lets me do a few pro bono cases a year."

"We have seen each other in fifteen years. We've barely spoken since junior year…Why would you do this for me?"

Helga kind of hated the fact he brought up junior year. Even though it hurt at the time she was completely over it now. She hadn't thought about it in years. If it wasn't for Lila's murder she probably never would have thought about it again. Frankly, she kind of understood why he did it. He was under Lila's spell and he was angry. She felt like should would be a complete hypocrite if she didn't understand acting out when angry.

"Because I know you're innocent. It's the right thing to do." Helga told him simply and smiled when Arnold nodded, "Okay, great. For starters I am going to talk to a judge to grant you bail. If it's not too outrageous I'll pay that so you can get the hell out of this place." She raised a hand, "Before you start, as long as you show up to court hearings and don't run I get that money back…So don't run, okay?"

They were interrupted by a knock on the door. It was the guard, "You have five minutes."

"Actually, we're done here." Helga stood up. "I'll get a meeting with a judge before the day is over. Hopefully we'll get you out of here by the end of the weekend. I'll be sure to get updates to you." Helga grabbed her briefcase and headed towards the door.

"Helga wait." Helga stopped at the door and turned back towards him. "Thank you. For everything. Thank you."

"Thank me when I get the charges against you dropped."

* * *

A big thank you to all those who have reviewed! I'm blown away with how well this have been received so far.


	4. Free

**Secrets Part Four**

Helga had gotten home about an hour earlier and was currently working on what felt like an endless pile of paperwork. She managed to convince Judge Edward Collins to post bail for Arnold, but not in a way she expected. At first, Judge Collins had been reluctant to set bail because of what Arnold was accused of doing to his estranged wife. Helga had to make some compromises. He was going to be under house arrest.

In Helga's penthouse.

She wasn't sure how he'd feel about that, but she figured he'd rather be there than in jail. She had plenty of space, so they both should be comfortable living there. Albeit being a little awkward. Okay, it was going to be a lot awkward. In reality Arnold could have been put under house arrest in his own apartment, but that would make things more of a hassle for Helga. Working on Arnold's case would be so much easier if he were close by, rather than nearly an hour's drive away. If traffic was good.

 _Ring! Ring!_

Helga looked down at her phone to see that Mike was calling. She wondered for a moment why he was calling, she was supposed to be at his cabin right now. Usually he didn't interrupt her time there, "Hey Mike, what's up?"

 _"You're home, right?"_

"Umm…Yeah." Helga frowned deeply. He sounded weird. "What's up?" She asked again.

 _"Did you eat yet?" Mike asked, ignoring her question._

"No." Helga was confused. Normally he was pretty upfront with her.

 _"I'm bringing over supper. Buzz me up when I get there?"_

"Okay…? Is everything okay?" She asked. She released a frustrated sigh, realizing Mike had already hung up. She stacked the paperwork she had already filled out, and placed them into her briefcase. She was about to work on the remaining half dozen papers, but she was interrupted by a _buzz_ and Mike's staticy voice asking to be let up.

She pressed a button, allowing him access to her elevator and met him at the front door. "What the heck is going on? You kind of freaked me out on the phone. And did you already pick up dinner before you called? You got here in like five minutes."

"Why are you at the cabin?" Mike asked, once again ignoring her questions. He set two take out bags on to her kitchen island. She watched him for a moment as he pulled out plates before he started to riffle through her liquor cabinet. "I'm making myself a drink, you want one?"

"I feel like I'm about to need one, so sure. There's Yahoo in the fridge." Helga sat on the barstool in front of her kitchen island and grabbed the bag with the letter 'H' written on it in black Sharpie. "Are you going to tell me what's going on with you? Or are we just going to eat and get drunk?" She watched him as he poured Whiskey into two glasses, not bothering using a shot glass to measure. "Did you and Hannah have a fight or something?"

"Let's talk about your first. Why aren't you at the cabin? You asked to use it this weekend." He slid her a glass of mostly whiskey and just a little bit of Yahoo soda. He ripped his takeout bag as he took a seat next to her.

Helga rolled her eyes as she unwrapped the bacon cheeseburger Mike had gotten for her. "Something came up." Mike gave her one of his looks that he always gave her when he was annoyed, "Why do you asked questions you obviously already know the answer to?"

"Have you gone crazy or something?" Mike asked, dumping his French fried onto his plate. "Do you know what you've gotten yourself into defending this man? You know what he did to his wife, right?"

"I know what he is _accused_ of. He didn't do it Mike."

"How can you be so sure? This is _the_ Arnold, right? You haven't seen him in fifteen years! How in the hell can you be so sure he didn't do it? People change Helga. You've worked so hard to get where you are. Is it really worth risking your reputation for a murderer?"

Helga scuffed, "Believe me, I know people change. I'm living proof of that. I'm pretty sure you never would have married in the first place if you knew me any earlier than you did. I was kind of nightmare. As for Arnold, I know it's nearly two decades, but I know he didn't do it. I can feel it in my bones that he didn't do it. You just have to trust me on this one. I know what I'm doing."

Taking a large bite of his burger Mike sighed heavily, "Okay, I trust you. I just don't want to you to get in over your head. If you need any help with all this, I'm here for you." He paused, "And I would have loved to have known you when you were at your sassiest. I've always liked your sass, Kitten."

Helga rolled her eyes, "Kitten? I'm your ex-wife, remember? That pet name died with our marriage." When she first met Mike he nicknamed her Hel Cat (because of her sass), then when they started dating and he got to know the side of her she rarely let others see Hel Cat evolved to Kitten. At first Helga had pretty much hated it, but it quickly grew on her and if she was honest she really missed Mike calling her it. "So did you just come here to lecture me or is there something else going on? You sounded really strange on the phone."

Again, Mike sighed. "Hannah and I had a pretty bad fight." Helga said nothing, waiting for him to continue. "She told me she's pregnant and I freaked out and accused her of cheating."

For the second time that day Helga was shocked. "Hannah's pregnant? Why…Why would you think she cheated on you?"

Mike shrugged, "We stopped using any kind of protection for the last five years of our marriage. And we never got pregnant…And we both know it wasn't you." He flinched when he noticed her wince, "Sorry." He apologized. "Anyway, Hannah and I have been using protection. I guess when it never happened for us I figured it would never happen for me."

Helga wasn't sure what to say, "Do you honestly think she cheated on you?" She finally asked. "I know it never happened for us, but we weren't exactly trying-trying. We just weren't not trying." That was true. They were never actively trying to get pregnant. When they started talking about having kids they decided that Helga would go off birth control and if it happened that was great and if it didn't that was okay too. At least that's what Helga thought they agreed on. Now she wasn't so sure, but she said nothing about it.

"No…I don't think she cheated. I think I might have just panicked." Mike admitted with a groan, "Did I completely mess this up?"

Helga shook her head, "I don't think so. I think you should go to her. Apologize. And just tell her the truth. I really think Hannah would understand if you just be honest with her."

Mike nodded. "Are you okay with me telling her things about us…About you?"

Slowly, Helga nodded. "I trust you." She nudged him, smiling, "Congratulations Dad. I'm really happy for you guys."

He smiled, "Thank you. For everything. You're the best ex-wife ever…Kitten." They finished eating and Mike left, in hopes to fix things with Hannah.

* * *

 _Ring! Ring!_

Helga didn't recognize the number, but with her profession she was used to getting all kinds of phone calls.

"Hello?"

 _"Hi…Is this Helga?" A male's voice asked._

"Yes…Who is this?"

 _"Hey Helga…Its Gerald. Johansen? Do you remember me?"_

Helga chuckled, "As much as I try Tall Hair Boy, I can't forget about you." She cleared her throat, turning serious. "I'm guessing you're calling about Arnold?"

 _"Yeah, I am." There was a pause. "I just wanted to thank you for offering to represent Arnold. I was actually going to call you for help, or at least see if you could recommend a lawyer, but you beat me to it." Another pause. "Honestly, I wasn't sure if you'd do it…Help him, I mean. I know things were never really resolved between the two of you…"_

"So you thought I'd let him rot in jail for something that happened in high school?" Helga rose an eyebrow, annoyed. "Criminy, how petty do you think I am?"

 _"I'm sorry." Gerald quickly apologized, "I didn't mean it like that. I just really appreciate you doing this for him. He told me you're doing it pro bono?"_

"Yeah. It's no big deal. I do a few pro bono cases a year. My firm likes it because it makes them look good in the end."

 _"Have you started going through evidence or anything yet? How are things looking?"_

"It's too early to tell. I can keep you updated though."

 _"Thank you. I'd really appreciate that." Another pause. "So…How've you been?"_

Helga laughed, "My ex-husband just told me his girlfriend is pregnant. Everything is fantastic. How have you been the past couple years?" She had seen Gerald and his wife Amy at Brooke Lloyd's funeral, so she had some knowledge of what he had been up to since high school. If memory served her correctly Amy was pregnant. "You know, other than your best friend in jail because he was accused of murder."

 _Gerald snorted, he almost forgot about Helga's bluntness. "Well, other than that things have been pretty great. Amy and I had a boy. His names Martin, after my dad, and I'm pretty sure he's officially in his terrible twos. Turns out that's not just an expression. Speaking of which, I can hear him giving Amy a hard time. I'll call you later…If you need anything don't hesitate to ask. Thanks again."_

* * *

A couple of hours later, as Helga got ready for bed, she got a text from Mike; thanking her again and telling her that everything was good between him and Hannah again. She was relieved. She really wanted Mike to be happy and she thought Hannah and their baby would make that happen.

There wasn't a doubt in her mind that she wanted him to be happy, so that is what made the over whelming sense of sadness she was feeling all the more confusing. By the time she crawled into bed she was in tears and she wasn't sure why. Okay, she knew exactly why she was crying, but she couldn't think about that right now. She had other things to focus on, like Arnold and his legal issues. But as she sobbed into her pillow thinking of anything else was impossible, so she cried herself to sleep instead.

* * *

By the time Monday rolled around Helga was feeling better. She spent the weekend prepping for both Arnold's trial and his arrival to her home. There were tears as well. She spent more time in front of the mirror that morning than usual, ensuring that it didn't look like she spent that past two days crying. She was pretty sure she did a good job of that. She used some cream to reduce some puffiness and eye drops for the redness. Currently, she was power walking to a meeting room to tell Arnold the good news. He was being released that morning. Sure, it was to house arrest but beggars can be choosers.

There was already an officer standing outside the door and she thanked him as he opened the door for her, "Good morning." She greeted Arnold with a smile, "Have you heard the good news?" She frowned when she got a good look at his face. He had a black eye. "What the hell happened to you?"

"Got jumped at lunch." Arnold told her, touching his black eye. "Apparently armed robbers don't like wife killers. Please tell the good news is that I'm getting out of here."

"You are. Judge Collins signed off first thing this morning. You're a free man…Kind of." Seeing the confused look Arnold gave her Helga continued, "Due to the manor that Lila was killed Collins didn't want to fully release you, so I had to make a deal. You'll be under house arrest, which means an ankle monitor."

Arnold released an audible sigh of relief. "Thank God. I know I won't be completely free, but locked up at home is better than here."

"Haha…" Helga laughed nervously, "About that…You won't be at your apartment. I live in Seattle and since I'm representing you it's just easier for me if you are closer…So you'll be staying at my apartment. Now, before you say anything I have plenty of room. You'll have your own room, obviously and your own bathroom. I know it will be a little uncomfortable, but-"

"You don't need to explain. Or convince me. I'm just so thankful to be getting out of here. Jail is awful. I don't care how awkward it will be. Plus, it might be kind of fun to catch up."

"You're being accused of murder, how much more catch up do we need?" She teased, "Anyway, I'm glad you're on board because, well you didn't really have a choice anyway. I just need to fill out some paperwork and we'll get you out of here."

*  
Hope you all liked this update! What do you all think of Mike? I hope you like him, because I really like writing him. Now that Arnold and Helga will be living together things will pick up real quick. If you enjoyed this update, please review.


	5. Apology

**So sorry it took so long for me to get this part out. I had a little bit of trouble to get this one out the way I wanted it to. Just a quick warning for this chapter, there is a mention of past drug use.**

 **Secrets Part Five**

After getting Arnold out of jail and making a pit stop at his apartment to pack some of his things Helga, Arnold, and an ununiformed police officer arrived at Helga's penthouse. Arnold couldn't contain his awe when he first stepped foot into Helga's home. It was quite impressive. Her kitchen would be any chef's dream, the floor to ceiling windows had breathtaking views of Elliot Bay. There was a large television in the open concept living/dining/kitchen area. "Wow. Helga, your place is amazing."

"Thanks." She smiled, slipping off her coat and hung it up in the coat closet. She held out her hand for Arnold to hand her his own jacket. "I like it. I'll show you where you'll be staying in just a second." She turned to the police officer. "You can start the perimeter set up whenever you're ready. There is fire escape in my master bedroom. Other than this door is the only way out." She motioned Arnold to follow her, "Do you need help with your bags?"

"No. I got them." Arnold packed two large suitcases, he could easily handle them by himself. "Thanks though."

"My room is right here." She motioned to a closed door on her right. "You are staying right across the hall." She opened the door and led him inside. This room had large windows as faced towards the city. There was a king sized bed and a small dresser and good sized television. "Closet is right here." She opened the door to reveal a large walk in closet.

"Lila would have killed for a closet like this." Arnold observed, pulling his suitcases inside. "She always complained ours was too small." There was plenty of hanging space along with spots for folded clothes and shoes.

"Well, good thing she never saw the closet in the master bedroom then…" Helga mumbled, "Anyway your bathroom is right here." She opened the last door in the bedroom. "I'll give you some time to get settled. After Officer Thomason puts your ankle monitor on we'll start talking about your case."

"Thanks again for everything Helga…I don't know how I'll ever be able to repay you."

"Like I said before, thank me when I prove you aren't guilty." She smile teasingly, "I'm sure I'll found some way for you to thank me."

One hour and one ankle monitor later Helga and Arnold were sitting at her kitchen table ready to start discussing the case. Helga had several thick folders sitting in front of her along with her laptop. "Alright…Let's start with where were you the night Lila was murdered."

"My apartment, alone. So no alibi."

"Does your complex have security cameras?" Helga asked as she typed out notes in word document.

"Yeah. The parking lot and entrances do."

"Good. I will subpoena a copy of the security footage of that night. Hopefully they still have copies. If not we'll talk to neighboring businesses. Tina Park would be a like a 30 minute walk for you, so logically if you were planning on killing your wife, you would have driven not walked." She grabbed a photo of a bookend out of the top folder. "Officers found this about 30 yards away from Lila's body. It's what was used to strike her in the head; your finger prints on it, so that's probably why they arrested you. The good news is that it's circumstantial. They found Lila's prints on it too, along with a few unidentified pairs." She handed Arnold the photo. "From the looks of it it's one half of a bookend. They found the other in Lila's house."

"We had those for years, they were a wedding gift."

"According to the police report Lila's front door wasn't locked after her body was discovered. Which is another good thing for you someone could have easily walked in and took it." She brushed her hair behind her ear. "If we're lucky we'll have this case dismissed before it even makes trial. It could happen because the evidence they have against you is circumstantial at best. Saying that, I've seen cases were the accused were convicted on less. Now, if we do go to trial you are going to have to be prepared. Questioning won't be easy. They will bring up any issues and every fight you and Lila ever had. They will ask about the divorce and why it was taking long to finalize." She paused, "Care to shed any light on that with me right now?"

"She cheated on me. More than once." He tunneled his fingers through his hair, "The first couple times she convinced me it was a mistake…that it was my fault even…I don't know why I put up with it; I just loved her so much. Or maybe it was just the idea of her. Is that possible? To love what the person could be more than the person."

Helga nodded. "Yeah…I think so." Honestly she knew exactly what he was talking about. That's how she felt towards him growing up. At the time she was so sure she loved Arnold, but then she met Mike and fell in love with him. It became clearer she was more in love with the idea of Arnold and what he could give her than Arnold himself. After all, he was her earliest memory of someone being nice to her. "So what was the final straw to make you file for divorce?"

Arnold shrugged, "I wish I could say I just woke up one day and finally realized I deserved better, but that wasn't exactly the case. Lila had been trying to convince me to get a second job, she didn't think I was making enough. You know, despite the fact she wasn't working. She was spending, but she wasn't bringing any money in. She told me it didn't pay for her to get a job because once she got pregnant she would want to stay home with the baby. Like her mom did with her. I stupidly thought a baby would fix things. So we were trying to get pregnant. At least I thought we were. I found her birth control pills and discovered her latest infidelity all on the same night. After that I was done. I realized she was never going to change. I'm pretty sure the only reason she married me is because I was always such a pushover when it came to her. She treated me like shit for years and I let her." He shook his head. "That just sound like motive, doesn't it?"

Helga took I minute to absorb all the information Arnold just relayed to her. "For some people, maybe. We will just need to be honest with the jury. You weren't happy in the marriage, she hurt you, but that doesn't equal murder. Do you know any of the names of the men she cheated on you with?" Arnold shook his head. "That's okay. I can talk to some of her friends and see if they now anything. Now, why was the divorce taking so long to finalize?"

"It probably sounds pretty petty now, but we were fighting over my grandmother's wedding ring. She left it to me when she died, it's what I used to propose to Lila. I wanted it back and she refused to give it to me. I was willing to give her the house and she wouldn't let me have the ring she didn't even like." He released an annoyed sigh. "I should have just let her have it to finally put an end to things, but honestly if she wasn't fighting for the ring it would have probably been something else. Believe it or not, but Lila could be pretty vindictive."

Helga snorted, "Oh, trust me, I believe it." She rolled her eyes, "It sucked no one else saw it, but I did."

Arnold was about to ask her to elaborate, but was interrupted by Helga's phone vibrating loudly against the table.

Helga grabbed her phone to see she had a text from Hannah, _Just thought I'd warn you. Mike and I our way over. He wanted drop in for a surprise visit. Apparently he wants to size that Arnold guy up. We're bringing pizza and beer._

"Oh, great." Helga grumbled, quickly texting Hannah back, thanking her for the heads up.

"What? What's wrong?" Arnold frowned, "Is it about my trial?"

"No. My ex-husband and his girlfriend are stopping over. They're bringing us supper."

"Your ex-husband and his girlfriend? Why?"

"Honestly, Mike is still pretty protective of me. He's coming to make sure you won't hurt me." She explained as stacked up files into a neat pile. "Don't mind him. He'll try to ruffle your feathers or whatever, but he's harmless."

"So why is he bringing his girlfriend?"

Helga shrugged, "That part doesn't bother me. Hannah is great, she's actually the one who let me know they were coming. I just get annoyed when Mike get all over protective. Hated it when we were married, hate it now."

"So you two still get along? Even after the divorce?"

"Yup." She cracked a small smile, "You know not all marriages end with one spouse being accused of murdering the other." She flinched, realizing what she said, "Sorry. That was probably too soon." She apologized with a slight chuckle in her voice.

Despite the seriousness of his situation Arnold released a low chuckle. "I almost forgot about that Pataki Wit of yours."

She feigned a gasp, "How dare you?" She asked, purposely overly dramatic. "My wit and sarcasm were my trademark."

A knock on the door interrupted their conversation. She sighed, "Mike and Hannah are here." She didn't mean to sound upset about it. She liked spending time with the couple, but she still had mixed feelings about Hannah's pregnancy. There was that and the fact that she had no idea what Mike was going to say to Arnold. She pulled herself out of her chair and opened the door. "Hey." She smiled when Hannah shot her an apologetic look. "Come on in." She shot Mike a look, "You're lucky you brought food."

"Some things never change…Bring Helga food and she's putty." Mike set a large pizza box and a twelve pack of beer down on the kitchen island. Arnold stood as stepped towards him. "You must be Arnold. I'm Mike." He shook the younger man's hand. "Helga's ex-husband." He gestured towards Hannah, "This is my girlfriend, Hannah." His words were friendly, but he looked tense.

Hannah rubbed Mike's arm for a moment before shaking Arnold's hand. "It's nice to meet you. Though I wish it were under better circumstances."

"Likewise." Arnold relaxed a little bit. He looked at Mike, "I'm really lucky that Helga is being so good to me through all this."

"Yes, you are." Mike nodded in agreement, glaring slightly. "I hope you're hungry. We brought pizza." He had yet to break eye contact.

Helga and Hannah exchanged worried glances, "Well, I'm hungry, so let's eat." Helga started to set the table. "Hannah, Arnold what would you like to drink? I have water, Yahoo soda, chocolate milk, white milk…" Hannah obviously wouldn't be drinking and Arnold couldn't drink any alcoholic beverages due to him being under house arrest.

"I'll just have some water, thanks." Hannah helped herself to a glass.

"A Yahoo sounds great." Arnold tore his line of vision from Mike's. "Is there anything I can help you with?"

"No, I got it thanks." Helga and Hannah sat on one side of the table, with Arnold and Mike sitting across from them.

"So Arnold…" Mike started after taking a large bite of his pizza. "You kill your wife?"

"Mike!" Helga scolded, her piece of pizza falling onto her plate.

"Helga its fine…Mike, I promise you, I did not kill Lila. All I wanted was to divorce her. I don't think she deserved to die the way she did."

Mike nodded, "Okay. I believe you." He paused, "But you do know if you hurt Helga I hurt you, right?"

Helga groaned as Arnold chuckled nervously. "I do now, but I have to tell you I have no intention hurting Helga in any way, shape, or form."

Mike grinned, "That's what I wanted to hear."

One pizza and several beers between Helga and Mike later things were starting to relax. "So Mike, how did you and Helga meet?" He shot Hannah a quick glance. "Is it okay I asked that?"

Hannah laughed, "Of course. I actually really like this story. It's cute!"

"We met at a sorority party…"

"Before you ask, I was tricked into going. I thought I was going out for tacos."

"Anyway it was my final year in Harvard Law and I needed to blow off some steam. One of my friends was dating one of sisters so I go the party and I'm there for a couple hours and decide I have to take a piss so I go looking for the bathroom. Instead I stumble into the sorority's game room or something. Anyway, I walk in and there's Helga sitting on the floor playing a game of solitaire. I forgot all about having to pee and started talking to her. She told me to leave her the hell alone." Mike laughed at the memory, "I was about to leave when I saw the collection of games that the sorority had."

"He got weirdly excited about the fact they had that Dream Phone game from the 90s." Helga laughed.

"What? I grew up with two older sisters. When I wanted to play with them I had to play what they wanted. We played that game _a lot_. I talked her into playing a game. By the end of the game I won two dates." Mike grinned, "One with Steve the other with Helga."

"I think we played Dream Phone with Gwen and Beth every time we all went to their parents during the holidays." Helga smiled, "I think that's one my favorite memories I have with you and your sisters. We always had so much fun playing that stupid game."

"My favorite memory with you and Olga is that time we smoked weed with her."

Arnold nearly spit out his Yahoo, "You two smoked pot with Olga?" He asked, wide eyed. "I'm sorry, I just can't picture it."

Helga laughed, "Imagine my surprise when it happened. It was the first time I brought Mike home, so you know he could meet everyone. He knew I was really nervous about it so he decided to bring a teensy bit of weed to calm my nerves. Bob and Miriam were going on and on about how Olga was going to have this elaborate meal for us all. Anyway, they had to leave the house because of some cell phone related business and Olga went the grocery store so Mike and I lit up in my room and were about half way through a joint when Olga bursts in all excited because she managed to find some ingredient that will make her goat milk cheesy potatoes taste even more delicious when she realizes what we're doing. I thought we were completely busted. She was going to tell Bob and Miriam and was going to get disowned or they were all going to completely hate Mike, but shock of all shocks Olga looks from me, to Mike, to the joint, back to me, sighs tells us that mommy and daddy are driving her crazy and asks if she can take a hit." Helga laughed at the memory, "We ended up smoking most of the weed before Bob called and said they were on they would be home in like an hour." She shook her head. "We ended up order a bunch of Chinese food and passed it off as Olga's cooking."

"We totally would have gotten away with it if it wasn't for the fortune cookies…" Mike laughed.

"And the fact we never threw away the to-go containers. We were all pretty baked. I'm not sure if Bob and Miriam ever figured it out, by my God it was hard to try to act normal in front of them."

"You and Helga grew up together, right Arnold?" Hannah asked, "You must have some good stories about her?"

Arnold grinned, "Well there was that time she dressed up like the Ghost Bride and scared the crap pretty much every boy in our class, including me…"

"Hey now, I only did that because you guys were all being sexist asshats."

"Then there was the time she tricked me into thinking I blinded her…"

"That's because you pranked me first by pretending to give me a belated birthday present."

"Or the time she pulled me into a pool with my clothes on."

"Umm…You pushed me into the pool first!"

"Wait! I know one!" Mike interrupted their playful banter, "What about the time someone spread a rumor about Helga screwing some guy in the janitor's closet—which was untrue, by the way, and you wouldn't listen to her side. In fact you stopped talking to her all together even after half the school started calling her a slut and that half that wasn't started to sexually harass her. Now _that_ was hilarious." He said with sarcasm practically dripping from his words.

Arnold's smile fell. He looked over at Helga, who looked horrified. "Helga I…"

Helga stood up abruptly, her chair skidding harshly against the hardwood. "Mike I need to talk to you privately." She marched towards her office, "Now!" She barked swung open the door. Mike said nothing as he followed her into the room.

Arnold and Hannah sat in stunned silence as they could her muffled yelling between the former married couple.

"I'm sorry about Mike…" Hannah apologized. "He and Helga may be divorced, but he still cares for her deeply. He just doesn't want to her hurting."

"Does that ever bother you? That they're still so close?" Arnold asked. "Present fight aside…"

Hannah shook her head, "I think it's wonderful that they've remained such good friends. I think that why they divorced when they did, so they could still be in each other's lives as friends. I've had friends who after they divorced they couldn't stand being anywhere near each other, leaving me to choose sides and that just sucked." She shrugged, "Besides, I trust Mike. I trust Helga too. They only want what's best for each other."

"I wish that how it could have been for Lila and me."

Hannah and Arnold looked up when they heard Helga's office door open. Mike sighed once he got to the table, "I'm sorry Arnold. I was a little out of line just now."

"Don't sweat it. I was a jerk for doing that to Helga." Arnold admitted, looking past Mike, struggling to read the expression on Helga's face. But she just looked tired.

Mike turned to Hannah, "You ready to go Han?"

Hannah nodded, "Sure." Truthfully, she wanted to talk to Helga in private. She wanted to talk about her pregnancy and how Helga felt about it, but now wasn't the time. Instead she gave the blonde woman a hug, "We should meet out for lunch or something soon."

Helga nodded, "Sure. I'll call you when things calm down a little bit."

Mike looking ever at Helga. "Sorry again, I'll see you later Kitten…"

After a couple more awkward goodbyes Helga locked up the penthouse as Mike and Hannah disappeared into the elevator. She leaned against the door closing her eyes and sighing heavily. When she opened her eyes again she found Arnold staring at her.

"I really am sorry about that whole Wolfgang thing. I know this apology is…" He paused, counting out the years, "Seventeen years too late, but I really am sorry. I should have heard you out."

"Criminy, Arnold…That was almost twenty years ago. It's practically ancient history. I don't know why Mike brought it up," She rolled her eyes, "Especially when we were just joking around."

"Probably because he knew how much I hurt you." Arnold pointed out. "You weren't kidding when you told me was protective of you." He offered her a small smile, "I'm glad you have someone like that in your life."

Another sigh, "Yeah…He drives me crazy sometimes, but I'm glad he's still in my life."

Arnold scratched the back of his neck nervously, "So was what he said true? That it wasn't true? You didn't sleep with Wolfgang. Lila made it all up?"

"Yup." Helga tunneled her fingers through her hair, debating if she should speak ill of the dead. "Told you I know I always knew Lila was a vindictive bitch."


End file.
